Improvement in machinery for pressing tobacco



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

W'ILLIAM CAMERON, OF PETERSBURG, VIRGINIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHlNERY `FOE'rarissime TOBACCO. y

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 22,014, dated November 9, 1858.

17:' @ZZ whom, t may concern- Be it known that I, WILLIAM CAMERON, of Petersburg, in the county of Dinwiddie and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machinery for Pressing Tobacco; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l represents a perspective view of a hydraulic press adapted to the purpose; and Fig. 2 represents in perspective the pile of boxes, segmental rings, and their connections for forming a portable secondary press to be used in connection with the hydraulic press.

My invention consists in the manner in which I build up or put together a series of boxes, followers, plates, segmental rings, and connecting screw-rods, so as to form within themselves a secondary press capable of exerting a certain amount of power and retaining that power while it isrun under a hydraulic press to receive the greater power of said hydraulic press without losing any of its own retained pressure, as will be explained.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the same with reference to the drawings.

In Fig. l I have shown a hydraulic press of ordinary construction, in which Amay repre.- sent the base, B the follower, and G the bed, said base and bed being firmly connected together by posts or columns D. On the base A are arranged ways E for guiding a truck or sets of wheels on the secondary press, to be hereinafter described, so that it may be readily run onto or from the hydraulic press.

Of the secondary press, Fig. 2, F represents a base-plate, furnished Iwith truck-wheels G, that run upon the ways E of the primary or hydraulic press. On this base-plate Fis arranged thefirst tier of tobacco-boxes H, (of

' which there may be any suitable number,) and around these boxes are placed the segments which are to hold them against the outward strain of the press. rlhe segments are made as follows: The portions I may be of wood,

and they are united to a metallic hoop or band, J, that will surround and hold them firmly together. The portions I are spandrels, filling in between the square of the boxes and the circle of the hoop or band, and one of these spandrels, with its portion of the hoop or band, should be hinged to the other portions, as at c, t facilitate their being placed around or removed from theboxes, and the screw-rods K should pass through two of these segments or spandrels-viz., the two that are oppositel to each other, or on opposite sides of the press; When the segments are placed around the boxes, the two ends of the hoop or band J are brought together, and, by means of a screwrod, b, that passes through lugs or ears c on said ends, itis tightly drawn up and secured. It is obvious that in drawing up the band or hoop the portions I cannot slip, owing to their great friction against the boxes, and because, also, of the rods K passing through two of them 5 but the hoop must slip as it is tightened up, and yet the portions I are connected to the hoop. To admit of the hoop coming up tight without moving the segments with them, a slot, d, is cut in the hoop at each one of its attachments to the segments I, and union is made blocks L are placed one in or over the top of each box, and over the blocks other pieces, f, if found necessary, to form an even or square top, upon which a metal plate, M, is placed, two sides of which pass over the screw-rods K. Upon this plate M is built up another tier of boxes, which are arranged, secured, and furnished with blocks, Src., and over them another metallic plate, N, Vand so on, if more than two tiers of boxes are to be built up, as above described of the lower tier, and the pressing operation is proceeded with as follows: rIhe screw-wheelsm are first run down on the screwrods, to be out of the way. The screw-wheels n are now run down on the rods K and against the plates M N, forcing the blocks L against the tobacco, and thus, to the extent of the power of the hand-screws, pressing the tobacco down and retaining the pressure upon it.A This secondary press is then run onto the hydraulic press and the hydraulic press set in motion, which raises up the secondary press until its a einem l top plate, N, comes against the bed C". The Y pressure then that was upon the. secondary press is taken up by the hydraulic or primary press and continued or added to until the operation of pressing is complete. The nuts or hand-screws on the rods are now run tight up against the plates M N to retain the pressure that is on or in the pile, and the hydraulic press is run down and the pile or secondary press run off on a track or Ways, and another pile run onto the press for another similar operation, thus making one hydraulic press serve the purpose of a score or'more of the ordinary presses, inasmuch as the tobacco can stand under the pressure put upon it in the hydraulic press as long as desirable, While the press itself can be used for any number of similar operations over aud over again.

The building up of the auxiliary' or second ary press of a series of boxes inclosed by sectional rings, followers, and plates united by screw-rods, as above set forth, not only admits of creating` and retaining` pressure, but the tobacco is pressed at the same time into the boxes, which compose a part of the secondary press. Such a secondary press, too, may be opened at any of its sections Without being required to begin at the top, or even to raise the top plate, which is quite heavy.

Having thus. fully described the nature and object of my invention, what I claim therein as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

l. The construction of the ring which con-` tains the tobacco boxes-viz., by segments held together by a band, which can be tightened or loosened and move independent of said segments, as set forth.

2. rlhe forming of a dress b means of one.'

s l Y two, or morepf such rings inelosing a series of tobacco-boxes, with plates above and below them, and scrmvrods furnished with hand- Wheels and nuts passing through said rings and plates, substantially as herein described.

VILLM. CAMERON. Witnesses:

A. B. SroUGHCroN, 1li-ros. H. UPPERMAN.

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